Contributors

These wonderful academics, architects, interior designers, planners, environmentalists, wellbeing consultants, advisors and activists have written for our beautiful Journal of Biophilic Design. I can’t thank them enough. I hope you enjoy their thoughts, research, opinions and are inspired to take ideas and put them into practice. We would love to hear your thoughts, do write to us. If you would like to write for us, please download the submission guidelines here. or if you would like to sponsor the journal please download the advertising pack here.

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Dr Vanessa Champion – Based in the UK, Ness is editorial director for The Journal of Biophilic Design (with 30,000 monthly listeners to the podcast series globally, and magazine which is distributed via Kindle and POD on Amazon and other outlets). She often features on discussion panels on Biophilic Design. Ness started her professional career as an academic at UCL with a PhD in Greek and Latin, working in the British Museum and generally honing her interest in research and how societies flourish. Ness also focused on art and architecture, fascinated how the visual environment informs our behaviours. Way before her academic career she had started selling her landscape and seascape photography, relishing the quiet, healing moments that nature gave to her during her teenage years. It was during her 20s that she started living very “naturally”, eating whole foods, reducing her grid energy consumption, choosing natural materials to wear, etc. During her academic career she started taking commercial and portrait photographs which has grown into stand-alone ventures including PhotoAid Global Foundation and employs other creatives. She eventually left academia and worked in various industries, including finance and broadcast working across creative, editorial and management roles. She became editorial director of a specialist London newspaper before establishing her own publication the Journal of Biophilic Design (international podcast series with a 30,000 monthly listenership, and online and printed magazine). She is also founder of Virtual Nature Walls which publishes small and large-scale virtual nature views for residential and commercial interiors. www.vanessachampion.co.uk

Oliver Heath is an Architectural and Interior Designer and his practice Oliver Heath Design are focussed on delivering health and wellbeing in the built environment. As writers, thought leaders and design practitioners they are recognised global experts in Biophilic Design – enhancing human nature connections in the spaces which are so important in our lives. Oliver’s media activity over the last 24 years has given him extensive presentation experience working for a number of television channels including BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and the National Geographic channel. He is a passionate advocate of sustainable design and has acted as a spokesperson for the likes of the UK’s Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC), the Energy Saving Trust (EST) and the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP).  Design clients include the likes of Schneider Electric, Apple, Bloomberg, The BRE, Booking.com, the John Lewis Partnership and he is currently a Biophilic design ambassador for Interface Flooring. https://www.oliverheath.com

Dr Sally Augustin Based in the USA, Sally Augustin, PhD, is a practicing environmental psychologist. She has extensive experience integrating science-based insights to develop recommendations for the design of places, objects, and services that support desired cognitive, emotional, and physical experiences.  She works with clients all over the world from North America and Europe to Asia.  Sally has appeared on mass-market national television and radio programs discussing how to use design to enhance lives. She is also a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, Forbes, Huffington Post, Psychology Today, Prevention, Salon, and Self and many other publications worldwide including the online Harvard Business Review where she has contributed articles on a range of topics, from engaging workplaces to design and culture. For Metropolis, she has written a series of articles about successful spaces titled “Places that Work.” Sally is also editor of Research Design Connections, where she has written widely on science-based design for a broad audience of people interested in the designed world. It was from this more academic platform that she dreamt of providing a consumer-based platform so more people can enjoy the benefits that the science of environmental psychology can bring to your home and work life. She speaks frequently to audiences in North America, Europe, and Asia at events such as the annual meeting of the American Institute of Architects, the International Design & Emotion Conference, the bi-annual meeting of the International Positive Psychology Association, the bi-annual meeting of the Association of Neuroscience for Architecture, NeoCon/IIDEX, the American Psychological Association’s annual meeting, the Environmental Design Research Association annual conference, Healthcare Design, Living-Futures, and Applied Brilliance. Sally Augustin is a graduate of Wellesley College (BA), Northwestern University (MBA), and Claremont Graduate University (PhD). She holds leadership positions in professional organisations such as the American Psychological Association (past-president, environmental psychology division) and the Environmental Design Research Association (chair, work environments network). https://designwithscience.com https://thespacedoctors.com

Maggie Procopi co-founder and owner of the Workplace Trends series of conferences and events. We cover upcoming trends for happy, healthy, productive workspaces. Our events have an emphasis on sharing knowledge and connecting designers, managers and consultants through quality, sociable, pitch-free conferences and events. Outside of work I'm mother to two fantastic young men, guardian of a large hound and several cats, and for a bit of fun, with my husband I organise our local beer, music and comedy festival. https://workplacetrends.co

Dr Nigel Oseland is a workplace strategist, change manager, environmental psychologist, researcher, international speaker and published author with 11 years research and 24 years consulting experience. He draws on his psychology background and his own research to advise occupiers on how to redefine their workstyles and rethink their workplace to create working environments that enhance individual and organisational performance and deliver maximum value.   Nigel’s consulting practice, Workplace Unlimited, specialises in strategic briefing and change management to help create workplaces that improve collaboration, enhance creativity, facilitate concentration, meet psychological needs and respond to changing organisational structures. He has advised corporate businesses, public sector bodies and educational institutions in the UK and worked with corporates throughout EMEA. Nigel is also an active researcher, speaker, lecturer, blogger and author. His current topics of interest include psychological needs, psychoacoustics, productivity, personality factors, remote working, collaboration, creativity, wellbeing, performance, biophilic design and Post Occupancy Evaluation (POE). In addition, Nigel is the programme advisor for the Workplace Trends  https://workplaceunlimited.com

Dr Joanne Leach Joanne’s interests can be found at the intersection of urban liveability, sustainability and resilience, with a focus on the link between urban environments, infrastructure and wellbeing. She joined the University of Birmingham in 2008 and is currently working with the UK Collaboratorium for Research on Infrastructure and Cities (UKCRIC) to create a world-class national cities and infrastructure research capability. She is a Sustainability Ambassador for the University, leads the School of Engineering’s Liveable Cities Research Group, and lectures on Sustainable Construction. She is a member of the Resilient Cities theme of the Institute for Global Innovation and is the academic lead for ‘Sustainable, Liveable and Resilient Cities’ at the Centre for Urban Wellbeing. https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/civil/leach-joanne.aspx

Ian Baker Head of Workplace | Shaping the future of work | Helping organisations develop workplace strategies, creating workplaces that support People, Productivity and Planet | public speaker https://www.emcoruk.com https://twitter.com/workplace_ian

Criswell Davis, President of Mighty Oaks Consulting, and co-founder of the Timber & Forestry Foundation based in Louisville, Kentucky, is a 34-year veteran of the American hardwood industry, having been in sales on both small and large scales and worked at a premium hardwood sawmill for 22 years.  He is an internationally recognized hardwood expert, a speaker with a focus on sustainable forest management and the use of wood in biophilic design.  He has presented to over 15,000 architects, designers, and students around the world for the past 14 years.  He has represented the American hardwood industry on behalf of The American Hardwood Export Council for more than a decade.  He has also helped to guide the specifications of the wood used in many high-end domestic and international projects.  He is a passionate ambassador for the hardwood lumber business, North American, European, and certified tropical forest products in our built environments.  criswell@mightyoaksconsulting.com https://timberandforestry.org/

David O’Coimin Based between Amsterdam and Bristol, David O’Coimin is a product and experience designer, digital nomad and social-minded founder with a passion for people, places and planet. Operating under the mantra of 'Design For The Extreme Benefits The Mean’ and guided by the UN Sustainable Development Goals, David helps organisations to realise the full potential of their space and the people who use them, with a particular focus on neuroinclusivity. http://nookpod.com

Guy Osmond has been working for nearly fifty years and in ergonomics and wellbeing for over thirty. Along the way, he has learned an enormous amount about people, performance, culture, workplace and engagement. Unfortunately, he has forgotten most of it but he still has quite a lot to say about almost anything. https://ergonomics.co.uk

Paige Hodsman is the Concept Developer for Offices in the UK and Ireland for Saint-Gobain Ecophon and is an office acoustics specialist. Her academic background includes Commercial Interior Design, Environmental Management and Decision Making and specialises in workplace environments and acoustics. She is a published author, co-writing the Acoustics chapter in the book Ergonomic Workplace Design for Health Wellness and Productivity, by Alan Hedge, CRC Press 2016 and A psychoacoustical approach to resolving office noise distraction, Journal of Corporate Real Estate, Emerald Publishing, 2018. She writes extensively on the subject of psychoacoustics in the context of office workers’ responses to sound stimulus, including the literature reviews: Planning for Psychoacoustics: A Psychological Approach to Resolving Office Noise Distraction, 2015 and Physiological Factors in Psychoacoustics: A neurophysiological approach to resolving office noise distraction, 2018.  Working in the field of commercial design since 1997, her project experience spans the continental US to the UK and across mainland Europe including collaboration projects globally. She has been interviewed on BBC radio, presents internationally and writes for magazines and professional publications on the subject of office acoustics for human health, well-being and performance. Paige regularly engages with high-profile organisations to help develop in-house acoustic guidelines, strategies and practical office acoustic solutions. She conducts surveys and administers Ecophon’s bespoke psychoacoustic tools to help organisations plan for robust acoustic solutions in the early phases of a project. https://www.ecophon.com/en/about-ecophon/acoustic-knowledge/meet-the-experts/paige-hodsman/

Andrea Harman Working as a concept developer for healthcare in the UK has enabled me to investigate and share information about the importance of the sound environment to our health and wellbeing. This is important for everyone, but especially to people who are ill. In my work I explore how noise can act as a stressor to people who are already stressed from being a patient in hospital, examine how a restful sound environment can aid sleep which in turn links to positive recovery and explore the impact of noise on older people who frequently have impaired hearing. An area of particular focus for me has been establishing the links between a good sound environment and enablement for people with dementia, where provision of a quiet room can help reduce anxiety and promote cognition and addition of sound absorption to a communal space can help communication and interaction. This has led to me studying for a MSc. in dementia studies focussing my learning on the built environment. https://www.ecophon.com/en/about-ecophon/acoustic-knowledge/meet-the-experts/andrea-harman/

Dr Leighton Phillips is Director of Research, Innovation and University Partnerships at Hywel Dda University Health Board and an Honorary Professor at Aberystwyth University.  In his current role, Leighton oversees a significant research portfolio, including supporting the industry in the development of new technologies and devices.  He also leads the Health Board’s Value-Based Healthcare Programme. Prior to joining the Health Board, Leighton worked in the HEI sector and the senior civil service.  He is a keen adventurer, loves spending time surfing and walking, and has a deep appreciation for the benefits that reconnecting with the natural world can bring. https://hduhb.nhs.wales/

Evan Benway, Founder and Managing Director of Moodsonic Evan is an avid technologist with over a dozen patents to his name, and prior to founding Moodsonic he led product and innovation teams for a Fortune 500 technology company in California. In addition to his work at Moodsonic, Evan works to advance the soundscape state of the art. He advises the International Well Building Institute on the WELL Building Standard’s Sound concept, and he is an active contributor to research on sound and cognition. Past research includes longitudinal office soundscaping studies, studies of neurodiverse responses to soundscapes, and physiological responses to sound. He is a frequent contributor to podcasts and industry journals, and a sought-after speaker at events and conferences related to sound, the built environment, and biophilic design. https://www.linkedin.com/in/evanbenway/ About Moodsonic Following two years of development and incubation, London-based Moodsonic launched in April 2022. Headed by Managing Director, Evan Benway, and with a team of leading software engineers and sound designers, in a short space of time Moodsonic has pioneered the biophilic soundscaping market and is now the leading provider of soundscapes in commercial workspaces. Moodsonic’s product is already actively improving the soundscape for thousands of employees over millions of square feet of real estate. https://www.moodsonic.com      info@moodsonic.com

Kenneth Freeman has a global reputation in interior landscaping, biophilic design and workplace wellbeing, and an extensive technical background in interior landscaping and horticulture. He has knowledge and understanding of air quality and monitoring and I have recently completed the RESET AP certification to become a RESET Accredited Professional. I have also developed skills and experience in sustainability through the management of an ambitious and effective environmental programme. https://purposefulplaces.co.uk

Judith Heerwagen PhD is an environmental and ecological psychologist whose work focuses on the behavioural, psychosocial, and health impacts of building design and operations. She is currently working with GSA’s Workplace 2030 project focused on re-imagining the future of work and workplace. Prior to joining GSA’s Office of High Performance Green Buildings, she was a senior scientist at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and also had her own consulting business for 10 years. In addition to her work with GSA, she is an affiliate faculty member in Architecture at the University of Washington. She has written widely on occupant experience in buildings, biophilic design, and the human factors of sustainability. She is co-editor of Biophilic Design: The Theory, Science and Practice of Bringing Buildings to Life which won the 2008 Publishers Award for best book in architecture and urban planning.   She received the 2014 Design for Humanity Award from the American Society of Interior Designers. https://research.be.uw.edu/people/judith-heerwagen/

Daniel Bell, has over 30 years experience in landscape design and since 2004 a pioneer of successful sustainable vertical gardens, working in challenging climates encompassing Scandinavia, Iran, USA and Australia. 0044 (0) 7483 217169 https://daniel-bell-vertical-garden.format.com

Alexander Verbeek is a Dutch environmentalist, public speaker, diplomat, and former strategic policy advisor at the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Over the past 30 years, he has worked on international security, humanitarian and geopolitical risk issues, and the linkage to the earth's accelerating environmental crisis, currently serving Policy Director at the Environment & Development Resource Centre. Alexander also works internationally as an expert speaker and advisor on planetary change to academia, global NGO's, private firms, and international organizations. He is an associate or fellow at a number of international think tanks, a Visiting Fellow in the Peace and Conflict Department of Uppsala University in Sweden, and is on the board of advisors of several international environmental initiatives. He is also an Associate Fellow at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy. Alexander is recognized online as an influential leader to follow on climate change, with more than 250,000 social media followers. https://worldfellows.yale.edu/person/alexander-verbeek/ https://theplanet.substack.com

Sam Peters, co-founder of Planted. Having spent almost two decades working across national media titles covering sport, Sam’s best work saw him nominated for the prestigious Cudlipp Prize in 2014 for his work driving The Mail on Sunday’s concussion in sport campaign, for which he was also short-listed as sports journalist of the year. Sam left the newspaper industry in 2019 to follow his true passion for nature and sustainable living and has since turned his mind to effecting positive environmental change through Planted events and media, where he is co-founder and responsible for editorial content and talks programmes.Planted Communities Planted events and media Planted is the first and only contemporary design event promoting exclusively nature-based and environmentally focused businesses and organisations. Built around the principles of biophilic design, Planted is committed to changing the way events are delivered by asking all exhibitors to reduce, reuse and repurpose all installations and stand builds. With a growing community of nature-loving design businesses, Planted showcases the very best of nature-based design in stunning rural and urban locations, creating thought-provoking content aimed at turning the tide on the twin climate and biodiversity crises.  For more information on Planted visit www.planted-cities.co.uk or follow them on @planted_community

Ackroyd and Harvey - Artists Heather Ackroyd and Dan Harvey (b. 1959/1959 England) are internationally acclaimed for creating works that intersect art, activism, architecture, biology, ecology and history.  Referencing memory and time, nature and culture, urban political ecologies, the climate emergency and degradation of the living planet, their time-based practice reveals an intrinsic bias towards process and event.  Processes of germination, growth and decay (organic and inorganic) feature in artworks that often evolve through extended research in response to people and place, interfacing their profound interest in local ecologies and global planetary concerns. They give high profile keynotes and public presentations and contribute writings and photographs to books and journals.  In 2019, the artists co-founded Culture Declares Emergency in response to the climate and ecological emergency. https://www.ackroydandharvey.com

Dr Charlie Easmon MBBS MRCP MSc Public Health DTM&H, CEO of Your Excellent Health Service www.yourexcellenthealth.org Twitter @charlieeasmon Linked in: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/charlie-easmon-1b64615 Dr Easmon, based in Harley Street, London trained at St George's. London. He did his elective in Ghana (his country of birth) and has since worked with, among others, Merlin, Raleigh International and Save the Children in Rwanda, and ECHO in Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. He has been privileged to work in and visit 75 countries. Charlie’s interest in mental & environmental health in the workplace came through his occupational health work. He has built his own private medical business through various (at times stressful) ups and downs over the last 15 years and has counted 12% of the FT100 amongst his clients.  Former President of The International Association of Physicians for the Overseas Services (IAPOS) www.iapos.co.uk. He is Medical Director of Your Excellent Health Service & COVID19Check (www.covid19check.uk ), Co-founder of Global Health Action Strategies and Solutions (www.ghass.co.uk), Former Honorary Lecture at UCL Performing Arts Medicine (2015-2018), Lecturer Diploma Course in Occupational Medicine at the Royal Society for Public Health (ww.rsph.org.uk) since 2010, 2016-18 part of the Development Team for The Black Cultural Archives http://www.bcaheritage.org.uk and is a TEDx Speaker on a “Private Alternative to WHO for Global Health” Emergencies  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INTlCAQJaro His board appointments include: Alma Mater Education/Organic Farm Charity in Ghana http://www.almamatereducation.org/ and The British Association of Performing Arts Medicine (BAPAM) www.bapam.org.uk.

Professor Chris Rogers spent three years in the civil engineering industry, becoming a chartered engineer as a result of this practical experience, before returning to academia to research pipeline soil-structure interaction. He lectured at Nottingham and Loughborough Universities before taking up his current position at the University of Birmingham in 1998. His research portfolio is dominated by two primary, necessarily interrelated, themes of infrastructure engineering and future cities. His 20-year programme of research into future cities has focussed on sustainability, resilience, liveability and (true) smartness, and has resulted in a suite of methodologies to support a new Theory of Change for infrastructure and urban systems.  For example, he led the multi-disciplinary Urban Futures consortium yielding a methodology to test the resilience of a city system intervention using extreme-yet-plausible future scenarios, and led the Liveable Cities programme grant exploring the performance of future cities in relation to individual & societal and planetary wellbeing.  He is researching novel approaches for the design of cities to improve people's health and wellbeing, embracing urban diagnostics, systems thinking and practice, urban observatories for real-time trials of interventions, city governance and the move towards transdisciplinarity.  He chaired the ICE’s Research, Development & Innovation Panel from 2010-2020 and was a member of the Lead Expert Group of the UK Government Foresight Future of Cities project. https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/civil/rogers-christopher.aspx

Dr Owen Wiseman is the founder of HealthWISE Consulting, a multi-interest organization focused on supporting the health of Canadians through direct patient care and helping business clients invest in the wellness of employees with programs that work. He is also an advisor to an international phytopharmaceutical company and was recently awarded Ottawa’s Best Health Educator of 2022 due to his exemplary clinical work and passion for promoting equitable access to nature. He sits on various boards and committees that raise awareness and provide programs that help get people outdoors and in nature. He is also an advisor to an international phytopharmaceutical company and has been awarded Ottawa’s Best Health Educator of three years in a row due to his exemplary clinical work and passion for promoting equitable access to nature. Dr. Owen is helping us get WISE about our health! www.owenwiseman.com @dr.owenwiseman @scienceandnatureofficial

Kimberly Merriman, PhD is a professor at the Manning School of Business, University of Massachusetts Lowell and an advisor on real estate trends. She is a widely published scholar, award-winning author and recognized authority in the media. Her research focuses on workforce issues and the intersecting role of real estate. Current topics include how cities become communities of choice, how place identity generates human vitality that spills to the workplace, and the recruitment advantage of biophilic office design. Follow Kim’s work at https://kkmerriman.com or https://twitter.com/kkmerriman

Lara Cowan Inspired by a Cotswold farmhouse childhood and tropical twenties spent in the Grenadines, Lara designs and manages garden renovations and runs nature-inspired events that focus on nature as a balm for the soul and society. She has long been a plants-woman and advocate for nature and wellness and has forged her path as a garden consultant, trained in horticulture, design, wild meadows, herbal medicine and intuitive land energy reading as a certified geomancer and earth acupuncturist. Now living in West Berkshire, she began her creative career working in design studios on shoots for Vogue magazine alongside Charlotte Tilbury and Lucinda Chambers, part of the set design team for royal photographer, Mario Testino. She then worked with a landscaping firm in London while studying for the RHS Diploma in Horticulture and now acts as consultant / head gardener at a number of private gardens guiding her gardening team on renovations and working with like-minded landscape architects and designers. Through her work she supports Jamie’s Farm, a brilliant initiative which acts as a catalyst for change, enabling disadvantaged young people to thrive academically, socially and emotionally. She would be delighted to talk with anyone interested in any area of her work and is always happy to talk to people interested in going into the business of horticulture. www.botanicshed.com

Vicky Draper With decades of experience healing animals and highly regarded as modern-day holistic, natural animal healer, Vicki Draper is a licensed massage therapist, certified acupressurist, Reiki Master/Teacher, craniosacral therapist, and multi-book author. She promotes animal healing, health, and transitions worldwide addressing wellness during every stage of an animal’s life. Whether you’re struggling with a cat, dog, or horse’s mental, emotional, behavioral or physical health, Vicki’s techniques provide healing and support. Learn all about Vicki on her website at https://healingyouranimal.com . Socials: https://www.facebook.com/healingyouranimal https://www.youtube.com/vickidraper https://www.instagram.com/healingyouranimal https://www.amazon.com/Vicki-Draper/e/B0B79GTQJY

Maureen K. Calamia is author of Creating Luminous Spaces (Conari Press, 2018) and The Enchanted Earth (Mango, due out 2024).  She empowers others to discover and nourish their relationship with nature in both their inner and outer landscapes. As founder of the Luminous Spaces School since 2015, Maureen offers online courses on feng shui, biophilic design, earth healing and dowsing, mindfulness, and spirituality. She is a columnist on these topics in the Journal of Biophilic Design and Medium.com. Her explorations have led her to study the topics of consciousness, depth psychology, and our connection with nature and other-than-human beings. Maureen served on the board of directors of the International Feng Shui Guild for 10 years and is currently a board member and a baby squirrel caregiver at Sweetbriar Nature Center, Smithtown, New York. Maureen is an inspirational thought leader on consciousness and being a mindful steward of the Earth by using the power of reclaiming and sharing our sacred stories of nature. Follow Maureen as she talks with her guests about their magical stories on The Enchanted Earth Podcast.  https://www.luminous-spaces.com/the-enchanted-earth-podcast-with-maureen-calamia/

Professor Emeritus Derek Clements-Croome at Reading University has worked in the building design and contracting industry before entering university life. He has founded and directed courses including a BSc in building environmental engineering at Loughborough University in 1970 and an inter­disciplinary Government funded MSc in Intelligent Buildings at Reading University in 1996.He has also worked in architecture and building engineering at the University of Bath (1978-1988) with Sir Ted Happold. He founded the CIBSE Intelligent Buildings Group in 2006 and co-founded the CIBSE Natural Ventilation Group in 1992 and was commended by the CIB for linking the CIBSE IBG with his work as Coordinator for the W098 Commission on Intelligent and Responsive Buildings. He was Vice President for CIBSE in 2007—9 and holds their Bronze and Silver Medals. Derek has been a commissioner on air quality and also biodiversity for some Boroughs in London. He was a member of the UK Green Building Council team who wrote the Report Health and Wellbeing in Homes ---July 2016 and the World Green Council Report on Health and Wellbeing in Offices 2014. He contributed to the BCO Report 2018 on Wellness Matters: the Guide to Specification 2019 and reports on Ventilation for COVID 19 in 2021 and also The Use of Wearables in the Office in 2021. He edits the INBI Journal and has edited and written chapters in the 3rd Edition of Creating the Productive Workplace Routledge 2018. His book Designing Buildings for People: Sustainable Liveable Architecture was published by Crowood Press in late 2020 and includes his work on assessing the impact on the environment on people’s health and wellbeing including nature based solutions with the economic and sustainability implications. Currently working on the 3rd edition of the book Intelligent Buildings being published by the ICE in 2024. https://derekcroome.com

Anicee Carolyn Bauer is an Environmental Psychologist & Coach, located in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, who guides and supports people in their personal and spiritual development. In 2022 she started her own endeavour Humans In Trees and therein she aims to help people get closer to their true essence and to seek inner peace, so that they feel empowered again to design their lives from the inside out. Anicee believes that at the heart of all our (global)problems lies our distorted relationship with nature: our lack of spirituality. Therefore she focuses on the journey we all have to go on sooner or later: the journey from head to heart. Her way of working revolves around family constellations and creative coaching or art therapy. With varied approaches Anicee helps people to “look at life from a different perspective” –at their own position within a system,(unconscious) judgments, beliefs and paradigms, (ineffective) coping behaviours and at the crucial role that emotions play. Important building blocks in her work are honesty, vulnerability and courage–as they can create a deeper connection between and within people and are beneficial for our mental and physical health. Moreover, Anicee also explores how the physical environment can support people in their growth process (e.g. learning new behaviour), where she envisions a synchronized flow between habits (behaviour design) and habitats (physical design). https://humansintrees.com

Fran Board Fran is passionate about how sound can enrich our everyday experiences. Her background combines design with the science of sound. Fran’s been working in soundscaping for over a decade, with projects in workplaces, retail, and transportation environments. Her research spans topics such as audiovisual aesthetics, neurodiversity, and wellbeing, and has been presented at numerous academic conferences. https://www.moodsonic.com      info@moodsonic.com

Kenneth Freeman, has almost 30 years’ experience in the interior landscaping industry in roles with a particular focus and research on the benefits of plants in buildings. He now runs his own interior landscaping and biophilic design consultancy. He has been involved in several academic studies in the UK and further afield and was an early protagonist of biophilia and biophilic design as a principle, and as an explanation for the benefits that nature-inspired design brings. He first started talking about the subject to architects and designers almost 20 years ago when the very word biophilia conjured images of a disease rather than a benefit. www.purposefulplaces.co.uk

Rebecca Olive is a Vice-Chancellor's Senior Research Fellow in the School of Global, Urban & Social Studies at RMIT University, Australia. Her research is interested in recreational sport and leisure, with a focus on gender politics and human-environmental health and wellbeing. Using fieldwork, interviews and social media analyses, her current work explores how nature-based sports, like swimming and surfing, activate care for coasts and oceans. You can read more about her project at www.movingoceans.com

Dr Harriet Shortt PhD MSc BSc PGCAPP CMBE Her research focuses on organisational space, artefacts, and the materiality of work. She has expertise in qualitative research methods including visual methodologies, specifically, participant-led photography. Harriet has led research projects with organisations such as Argent LLP, the RFU, Stride Treglown, ISG, the Environment Agency, NHS North Bristol Trust, and a wide variety of Hair and Beauty Salons across the UK. Her research has industry and academic impact and has been published in journals including Human Relations, Organizational Research Methods, Management Learning and the International Journal of Work, Organisation and Emotion. Harriet’s work is internationally recognised at the highest level, having won Paper of the Year 2015 in Human Relations. She has been interviewed by and written for press, including BBC Radio 4 and the Evening Standard. Harriet is Associate Professor in Organization Studies at Bristol Business School – University of the West of England and works for BiBO Studios Ltd – a placemaking consultancy and architectural studio. In her role as Head of Visual Engagement at BiBO, Harriet leads on projects that use visual and arts based methods in placemaking and public consultation. https://people.uwe.ac.uk/Person/HarrietShortt www.harrietshortt.wordpress.com

Gary Thornton BSC Honours, Associate Lighting Designer Gary is an Associate Lighting Designer at Nulty with over ten years of experience enhancing architecture and interiors through light. After graduating with a degree in product design from Brunel University, he spent the next decade developing his creative design skills and technical expertise on projects of all sizes across the globe. This included the delivery of a number of notable masterplan and urban design projects in Dubai and the wider MENA region. His role at Nulty sees him manage a large team of designers within the practice, where he is responsible for overseeing every stage of a client project, from conceptualisation through to implementation. He is passionate about communicating light’s capacity to bring life to internal and external spaces to students, and as a STEM ambassador actively promotes the career of architectural lighting design to the next generation of designers. https://www.nultylighting.co.uk/team/gary-thornton/

Odile Smith has a strong background in sourcing and procurement implementing sustainability and ESG principles as a work ethic long before this present crisis. She covered leadership roles in FMCG and publishing, after leaving the corporate world she set up a buying office specialising in quality craftmanship and sustainable materials serving the construction & home industry and as well as private art collectors. Implementing nature and healthy materials as pillars for her life and business she recently created thebiophilichub.com a space to share insights and experiences and grow together as a community in respecting people and planet www.thebiophilichub.com

Robert Bedner is Director of Cura Design which provides biophilic design for Architecture including highly sustainable homes and community projects with our relationship to nature as the core design value, the driver and generator for creating a new type of built environment that enhances nature and our well being. Cura deliver complicated projects on challenging sites, many in stunning landscapes, conservation areas and designated AONBs. Cura Design have also been featured speaking at the Future Plymouth 2030 video series and on the podcast for the Journal of Biophilic Design February 2022. Homebuilding and Renovating Show 2022,Plymouth University Sustainable Earth 2021 - Climate Emergency - the Race to Net Zero and Plymouth “Grey to Green” 2021 with Dusty Gedge.CESW Exeter Climate Summit 2018, The 13th Biennial European Town and Town Planners Conference 2019,Greenbuild Expo, the Expert Advice Centre Grand Designs Live, and BBC Radio Devon. https://www.curadesign.com

Ross O’Ceallaigh Urban Designer, Podcaster, LNPC Ranger. Ross is an Urban Designer, podcaster and London National Park City Ranger. He hosts the Green Urbanist Podcast, which explores how planners, architects, designers and policy makers can make cities more sustainable, healthy and happy. With experience working as an urban design consultant on projects in England, Ireland and Nigeria, Ross now runs learning programmes with Design South East to upskill built environment professional in design and sustainability. https://greenurbanistpod.com

Karen Brazier is the co-founder of FOLDE Dorset, a nature-themed bookshop and gallery on Gold Hill in Shaftesbury. After struggling with burn-out in her previous career as a marketing director, she discovered there was sanctuary to be found in getting outside. Walking, on the Dorset coast in particular, gave her the tools to recalibrate and the corresponding connection with nature helped her to make sense of her place in the world. She is a keen outdoor swimmer and borders on the evangelical about its therapeutic benefits. She is currently chipping away at the South West Coast Path: 130 miles done... just the 500 to go! https://www.foldedorset.com

Amber Harrison is the co-founder of FOLDE Dorset, a nature-themed bookshop and gallery on Gold Hill in Shaftesbury. Amber Harrison spent more working time away from her hometown of Shaftesbury, rather than being part of the community that she loved and the countryside she always returned to. A big decision to step off the corporate ladder gave her the opportunity to look at things afresh, and to take time to reset her life with the creation of FOLDE Dorset, with co-founder Karen. Being grounded in nature and mindful of the seasons helps combine Amber’s love of reading and her 15 years of sustainability experience together into a small but perfectly formed bookshop/gallery. https://www.foldedorset.com

Rob Shepheard is Consultant Clinical Audiologist and has for 38 years worked in hospitals helping treat people with hearing and balance disorders, he specialises in tinnitus and prevention of induced auditory conditions. In addition to his clinical role, he has worked in diverse environments from industry to motorsport preventing Sound induced hearing loss. He is audiologist for the Royal College of Music, Healthy Conservatoires Network and the British Association for Performing Arts Medicine. He is lead on the UK HCA’s Music, Entertainment SIG, and a UK expert on the European technical committees responsible for standards relating to hearing protection. He is also an active member of the World Health Organisation’s Make Listening Safe working group. entandhearinghealthcare.com

Dr Wei YANG FAcSS FRTPI , Chairman, Wei Yang and Partners, and CEO, Digital Task Force for Planning. Dr Wei Yang is an internationally renowned town planner and urban designer, who champions a place-based whole systems approach to tackle the grand challenges. Wei is Founder and Chairman of Wei Yang & Partners, an award-winning master planning firm in London, and Co-Founder and CEO of Digital Task Force for Planning, an innovation-led social enterprise. She was named as a Net Zero Hero by Digital Leaders in 2022. Actively promoting joined up thinking between different professionals, Wei is a Fellow of Academy of Social Sciences, an Honorary Professor at University College London, and a board member of the British Library. She was President for 2021 of the Royal Town Planning Institute and will become the UK Construction Industry Council’s first female Chair in June 2023. She is Global Planner Networks (GPN) representative at the UN Habitat Professional Forum, and Professionals Co-Chair of the UN Habitat World Urban Campaign Steering Committee. www.weiyangandpartners.co.uk

Ms. Sumita Singha OBE RIBA Sumita is the award winning founder of Ecologic Architects, Professor of Architecture and author of many books. Sumita founded Architects For Change, the Equality forum at RIBA. Sumita is a trustee of four built environment charities including the Architects Benevolent Society and RIBA. Sumita received the OBE for services to architecture in 2021. She is also teacher and writer with awards including the UIA:UNESCO International, Women In Business and Atkins Inspire. She founded Architects For Change, the Equality forum at RIBA, and is past Chair of Women In Architecture. Sumita has served on many RIBA committees for over 25 years, including the Professional Standards panel and Ethics and Sustainable Development Commission. She is a nationally elected RIBA Councillor and the Board Trustee for Education. Sumita served as a non-executive Director in the NHS for nine years. Sumita is a trustee of Architects Benevolent Society, Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills and Commonwealth Association of Architects; and founding director of Charushila, an environmental design charity. She has also taught sustainable design for over 25 years, is visiting a Professor at the Politecnico di Milano, lecturer and external examiner at several UK universities. Sumita is the author of many books and publications on architecture and sustainable design. Sumita received an OBE for services to architecture in 2021. www.ecologicarchitects.com

Mary Reynolds Thompson, founder of Live Your Wild Soul Story, is an award-winning author, internationally recognized speaker, and a facilitator of poetry therapy. A pioneer in the spiritual ecology movement, her focus is on the transformative power of landscape archetypes and nature metaphors to reveal our true purpose and right relationship with the planet. Her book Reclaiming the Wild Soul was a 2015 Nautilus Award-winner. Her most recent work, A Wild Soul Woman launched in September 2022. To learn more or contact Mary, visit www.maryreynoldsthompson.com

Amanda Bond, Nature advocate, Forest Guardian and TreeSister. Working together with nature to support individual, collective, and planetary health. Drawing on professional trainings in Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy with Franklyn Sills; Core Process (Mindfulness Based) Psychotherapy with Maura Sills; Nature & Forest Therapy with M.Amos Clifford and A Wild Soul Woman with Mary Reynolds Thompson; all pioneers, Nature Health Practitioners (NHP) network in the South West. Amanda’s work embraces the wild edges – between humans, the more-than-human world and the planet. A connector, Amanda has always taken time to support others in finding their niche, often being an initiator in new relationships. Primarily focused on nature-relatedness and connectedness, Amanda is actively seeking new connections to support collaborations in the UK and overseas. Amanda is currently moving into new work inspired by the Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature (GARN), having met a Brazilian Environmental lawyer, Vanessa Hasson, in Cyprus in 2021, who drafted the Rights of Nature for Brazil. https://wildedgewalker.earth

Lucy Barfoot, Coconut and Cotton. After studying physics I developed an interest in surplus food supply chains, then a passion for plastic free living and sourcing ethical products. I have worked in labs, events, floristry, marketing and website development but I am always drawn back to wanting to work with nature and sustainability. I am happiest on a mountain, hidden in a woodland or floating in the sea and am unusually enthusiastic about coconuts - because you can use every part of the tree! Everything has to have balance and I believe it’s about progress and not perfection in all areas of life. https://coconutandcotton.co.uk

Chris Sparham is the marketing manager at Rap Interiors’ Maidstone HQ. Chris is passionate about good interior design and regularly writes about how it affects team performance, morale and business operations. In addition to copywriting, he travels to workplaces across the UK to photograph the incredible transformations carried out by Rap. www.rapinteriors.co.uk 

Nuria Muñoz is a Wellbeing Interior Designer, Consultant, Speaker and Educator based in Valencia Spain but working Internationally. She strongly believes that our quality of life depends on our connection with nature and therefore made it her mission to create healthier and more attractive living and working environments, and to advocate and spread this passion with the rest of the world. Nuria has a multidisciplinary background: studied Economics in UPV/EHU in and Marketing in the Chartered Institute of Marketing in Bilbao, followed by studies of interior architecture in Belgium. After 15 years of owning a business in Fashion and Design in Belgium, she moved back to Spain with her husband and 3 beautiful kids to follow her dreams and passion: create wellbeing environments with the help of science. She founded Habitarmonia design studio that offers both B2B and B2C services and has won awards including best customer services at Houzz, Finalist at Golden Trezzini Awards for a Biophilic Interior Renovation and Wintrade Global for Award for Best Entrepreneur of the Year for Design. Nuria gives masterclasses in Biophilic Design to different audiences, such as schools (UPV, MasterD), companies (Cosentino, Yource) and networking hubs (EWA, Wintrade Global, VIBS), and she has held different Summits in the USA (Science in Design Summit 2022) to create awareness of Biophilic Design among interior designers and professionals. She is part of the Biophilic Society of Living Future Europe, where she promotes the culture of Biophilia. She also writes in a Spanish magazine as a columnist for awareness of sustainable lifestyle (The Reason Behind), and writes blogs for advancing the culture of biophilic design in several platforms, such as The Good Life Project. www.habitarmonia.com

Christine Kohlert. For more than 40 years Christine Kohlert has researched and worked in the field of working and learning spaces of the future, in particular with the interaction of space and organization. Her main focus is on the user involvement in the development process, the visualization of change processes, and spatial analysis. She is also a professor at the Mediadesign University in Munich and the University in Augsburg. At the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), she worked for 12 years as a research affiliate on various research projects and led seminars on space and organization as well as on innovation. She is the author of several books. In 2018 she published the book “Space for Creative Thinking – Design Principles for Learning and Working” together with Scott Cooper. Christine Kohlert advises and accompanies universities and organizations in the development of strategy and vision and leads and conducts accompanying workshops and excursions. She is on various committees and is a scientific advisor for conferences. As an architect, she has worked for renowned clients in the USA, Great Britain, China, Sweden and Eastern Europe, among others. Prof. Dr. Kohlert lived three years in Tanzania and one year in Kosovo and lectured at the universities there. She has worked for the Gesellschaft für technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, Cultural Heritage without Borders (CHwB) as well as the German Embassy and has managed various urban development projects. She also supervised development projects in Tanzania as part of the curriculum (UNESCO). https://www.christine-kohlert.com

Brian Martin, co-founder InSpira. If you ask Brian what he does, his answer is usually” turning peoples’ dreams into reality”. Brian Martin is a thoughtful freelance Design Engineer with the breadth of experience and intuition to communicate and deliver an ingenious way of achieving any idea you can imagine. After his BSc in Industrial Design at De Montfort University, his career started in the heavy engineering world of the waste and recycling vehicle industry. He left a role as Product Development Manager in 2016, in search of something more worthwhile. Since then, he has delivered designs for many well-known brands. In doing so he met his business partner and co-founder of InSpira, a biophilic garden room company, based near Lewes in East Sussex. These beautiful spaces are the product of Brian’s innovative skills, his passion for nature and well-being and embody their ideals and desire to provide something right and beneficial. https://in-spira.co.uk

Rose Morrison is the managing editor of Renovated.com. Her work has been featured on The National Association of Realtors, the American Society of Home Inspectors, and other reputable publications. For more from Rose, you can follow her on Twitter.

Jaime Blakeley-Glover, Co-Founder and Head of Sustainability, Orientate. Jaime works at the intersection between the built environment, human development and the natural world. He supports clients within these sectors whilst continually exploring and shaping the spaces in between them. He combines two decades of experience working in the built environment across property, regeneration and sustainability sectors with work as a coach, facilitator and outdoor guide. Accredited coach Senior Practitioner (EMCC EIA); ILM Level 7 Certificate in Executive Coaching; Certificate in Systemic Team Coaching (AoEC); Summer Mountain Leader (ML) www.orientate.earth

Dr Keren MacLennan, Assistant Professor in Neurodiversity in the Department of Psychology at Durham University. Her primary research areas are autism, sensory processing, and mental health. She is particularly interested in understanding how autistic people experiences both enjoyable and challenging sensory input and how this relates to mental wellbeing and the development of inclusive environments. https://www.durham.ac.uk/staff/keren-maclennan/

Ilaria Comini is an Italian Architect and interior Designer based in Frankfurt. She successfully graduated at the university “Sapienza” of Rome and integrated her studies among the technical University of Darmstadt. During her Academic years she developed a strong interest for the Sustainable Design, in particular for the bioclimatic quality and energy efficiency in Architecture. In 2018 she attended the II Level Masterclass in “Sustainable Environmental and Technological Design”. In 2021, while discovering her devotion for plants and botanic, she joined the International living Future Institut through the Masterclass “Regenerative Design + Agile” . Her final project-research was about the commitment of the city of Frankfurt to the 17 SDGs in view of a transition towards the principles of the Living building challenge 4.0. Thanks to her experience in housing projects, she understood very soon the importance of building healthy spaces in connection with nature. She is a member of the Biophilic society and since the beginning of 2023 Ilaria is taking an active part among the movement “Architects for future“ in Frankfurt. She is now supplementing her studies at the “IBN Institut für Baubiologie”. https://www.linkedin.com/in/ilaria-comini-1a5a70119

Ann Rochyne Thomas is a cross-disciplinary biologist and ecological spatial planner. She is the founder of BIONOVA, a bio-intelligence advisory for spatial planning and design. She also heads the Centre for Climate Resilience, a sustainability and climate change advisory for the built environment sector. She is a triple post - graduate whose passion lies at the interface between ecological urbanism, bioclimatic architecture and natural capital valuation. Connect with her on www.linkedin.com/in/rochyne Centre for Climate Resilience: www.ccradvisory.org BIONOVA www.bionovasolutions.com

Professor Mike Batty, CBE FBA FRS FAcSS is a British urban planner, geographer and spatial data scientist, and Bartlett Professor of Planning in The Bartlett at University College London. He has been Director—now Chairman—of the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, set up when he was appointed to UCL in 1995. Winner of the 2012 Research Award from the University Consortium in Geographic Information Science, and was also awarded the the Lauréat Prix International de Géographie Vautrin Lud in 2013. http://www.complexcity.info https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Batty

Staffan Tollgard, Born out of a shared passion for design, the Design Group is run and managed by Inchbald-educated, husband- and-wife team, Staffan and Monique Tollgård. “A background in feature film and  documentary production characterises our work: a commitment to the power of storytelling, to the narrative that our clients bring, to the history of the buildings in which we work and the shared stories of the design objects we curate. Increasingly we have become interested in how to help our families live more meaningful, balanced and connected lives together. While the balance of form and function is at the head of our practice, you might say the heart of our work is about how to create spaces and opportunities for family time and personal growth. Music, reading, gardening, cooking, homework, games ... these are some of the family rituals that a well-planned house can design in. We are clear that family-centric design means spending time with your family. We have reorganised our working life so that one of us is always able to pick up and fetch the kids, working from home those days. Our clients and our kids can always expect a Tollgard. They just might now know which one if they change the date of a meeting. We feel that this experience of juggling work and home life is invaluable to our clients. We speak knowledgeably about the importance of the rituals of home life and the space and functions required because we are busy crafting them at home too.” https://tollgard.com

IDr. Marivic T. Sambo, PIID, is an accomplished Filipino interior designer who holds the position of co-founder and interior designer at ISHIKAWASAMBO, an architecture and interior design studio based in Japan and in the Philippines. In addition to her contributions at ISHIKAWASAMBO, she also co-founded Makers' Day!, a groundbreaking social entrepreneurship initiative aimed at fostering deep community connections in Yokohama. This visionary project demonstrates her profound dedication to using design as a catalyst for positive change, enriching the lives of individuals within the community and beyond. https://en.ishikawasambo.com

Nicholas Atherton is founder of the award winning Natural Dimensions Landscape Architecture and Urban Design studio. A chartered landscape architect with 25 years experience, his practice in Manchester, UK specialises in the creation of nature rich, climate responsive designs which incorporate beauty and resilience and imbue a site with character and cultural meaning.   The studio’s work encompasses masterplanning and detailed design of sensitive urban sites, public gardens and parks, educational establishments, roof parks and private gardens.  He has a passion for naturalistic planting design and likes to bring this into both small and large scale schemes. His practice also has a particular skill in the production of landscape /  townscape  and visual impact assessments and character assessments.  Nick has featured in several podcasts to talk about school landscapes which he loves doing, and is an advocate for the development of school design which encourages sensory engagement between children and nature to develop learning environments which encourage an understanding of environmental  stewardship,  which acknowledge the positive physical and mental effects of interacting with nature, counter the dramatic loss of nature based exploration in children and also respond to the significant nature depletion in the UK https://www.naturaldimensions.co.uk

Deborah A. Early, PhD is an artist and scientist. She incorporates contemplative reflection with biophilic art as an interdisciplinary bridge to encourage professionals to explore their own identity and relationship with the natural world. She currently lives, boat access only, on the Queen Charlotte Track in Aotearoa New Zealand. www.deborahearlyphd.com

Geoffrey Makstutis BScArch AADipl PgCertHE RIBA ARB FCABE SFHEA FRSA studied architecture at the University of Michigan and the Architectural Association, London. He is the Head of KLC School of Design, part of West Dean College. Prior to joining West Dean, he was the Subject Lead for Construction, Art, Design and Media for Pearson’s Higher Education team. He was also, for 12 years, the head of the undergraduate architecture programme at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London. In addition, he has lectured and been external examiner at the Architectural Association, University of Westminster, Royal College of Art, Glasgow School of Art, Hong Kong Design Institute, University of Lincoln, University of Hertfordshire, Universitat Politècnica de València, University of the Creative Arts, and London School of Economics. Prior to moving into academia, Geoffrey worked as a practicing architect in the US and the UK on projects ranging from small residential to commercial and retail and cultural institutions, in the UK, US, Europe and Japan. Geoffrey has written extensively on architecture, design and education. He has written two books for Lawrence King Publishers. “Architecture: An Introduction” was published in 2010 and “Design Process in Architecture” in 2018. He has also published numerous articles on construction, art, media, architecture and education.​ westdean.ac.uk

James Smith is the Head of Design at Botanica Nurseries Ltd, a family run interior landscaping company based in Slough. He has been working for the business full time for 12 years, but grew up around the family nursery, and developed a passion for tropical plants from a young age. He believes the future of the working environment will be much more organic, and reflective of the way humans thrive in nature. Good interior plant design is key to achieving this goal. https://www.plantdisplaysforoffices.co.uk

Gagan Bathh, a psychology enthusiast with an MSc in Organisational Psychology. My love for outdoor activities like hiking, photography and slacklining led me to the captivating Biophilic Hypothesis, revealing the natural secrets of serenity. My research centres on the fascinating relationship between biophilic design, anxiety, and creativity. I now work as a Graduate Occupational Psychologist with Lloyds Banking Group, promoting well-being into the corporate world. https://www.linkedin.com/in/gagan-bathh/

Steve Brewer Founding partner of BJB - Burtt-Jones & Brewer.  A proud B Corp certified company. With my Burtt-Jones & Brewer hat on, I have designed workplaces for some of the world’s largest and best known companies. From Google and Yahoo! to the Bank of England, HM Treasury (HMT), The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and Shelter. Executive Board level advisor and to key stakeholders, regarding workplace strategy and design. 23+ years experience has seen me challenging how space can be structurally changed and re-organised, and where internal, physical barriers can be altered to enhance the environment, but not at the cost of it....b BSc (Hons) in Industrial Design (Designer of the World's first ‘beach-friendly’ wheelchair.) I believe that creativity shouldn’t cost the Earth; neither should the products we buy, or the environments we design. bIf that’s not enough, I also volunteer for the charity Whizz-Kidz and Forestry England and a mentor at Shift MS. I am also partial to a bit of riding/racing on one of my bikes or running in the woods. And in my 'spare' time I can be found juggling my time between my wife, two children, dog and cat (not literally) (honest). www.burtt-jonesandbrewer.com      

Lisanne Bergefurt works as an Assistant Professor at the faculty of the Built Environment at the Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) in the Netherlands. In 2023, she finished her PhD cum laude, where she focused on the relationships between the physical workplace and mental health, considering both the home and the office. She uses multiple statistical analyses to get holistic insights in these complex relationships. Lisanne’s aim is to gain understanding in how the workplace should be designed to positively contribute to employee behavior and well-being. https://www.tue.nl/en/research/researchers/lisanne-bergefurt

Siân Moxon is Associate Professor of Sustainable Architecture at London Metropolitan University’s School of Art, Architecture and Design. Siân is an architect, author and founder of the award-winning Rewild My Street urban-rewilding campaign. Rewild My Street aims to inspire and empower urban residents to transform their homes, gardens and streets for wildlife through design-led guidance. Siân is an expert in sustainable design, who teaches Architecture and Interior Design, conducts design research on urban rewilding, and works with community partners on knowledge exchange around design for biodiversity. She writes for both academic and trade publications, and her ‘Sustainability in Interior Design’ book (Laurence King, 2012) is published in 5 languages. www.rewildmystreet.org

Natalie Arestis. Following a career in marketing and PR, Natalie decided to pursue herown passion in design and is currently working towards a Diploma inInterior Design at London’s KLC School of Design. She is fascinatedby the stories behind brands and purposeful design and hopes one day to play her part in this important process as an interior designer.

Mark Eltringham has worked in the office design, built environment, workplace and facilities management sectors for over 30 years. He is the publisher of workplaceinsight.net, IN Magazine, and Works magazine which are Europe's foremost publications exploring working lives, technology, flexible working, office design and workplace management. He is also the European Director of Work&Place, the world's leading journal looking at the many facets of the workplace. A fluent German speaker, he is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts. https://workplaceinsight.net

Angeli Ganoo-Fletcher is PRP’s director of Landscape and oversees the landscape and placemaking portfolio for the PRP studios. With over 25 years of experience, she is responsible for managing the landscape team, covering all aspects of landscape procurement from feasibility stages to design development, implementation, and delivery of large-scale residential and commercial landscapes as well as the intimate landscape required within the care industry. She sits on a couple of Design Review Panels namely the Kingston Placemaking Design Review Panel as well as the Frame Royal Borough of Greenwich Design Review Panel. As a chartered landscape architect, Angeli integrates environmental and social values into external spatial design and arrangement. This approach aims to enhance people's lives and the environments they inhabit. www.prp-co.uk 

Thomas Palfreyman, Managing Director of The Urban Planters Group. His main areas of work for Urban Planters include group development, national sales, new products, and innovations. Tom has an HND in Horticulture from Askham Bryan College, York, and has worked in the interior landscaping industry for the past 28 years.  Tom is passionate about improving the places people live, work, learn and play through plants,minimising the impact we all have on the planet, and let’s not forget his family and horse! Tom held the position of plants@work (then efig) Chairman between 2009 - 2012, and during his time in tenure he was proactive and committed to achieving the best for the organisation and its members. In June 2016 he was appointed an Ambassador for plants@work. https://www.urbanplanters.co.uk http://www.plantsatwork.org.uk

Josh Goodison, Founder and Director - NeuroBridge, working with organisations to create comprehensive support structures that anticipate and address the needs of neurodivergent individuals, their managers, and organisations, creating cultures where everyone can recognise the value of variety within cognitive operating systems. https://neurobridge.co.uk

Stephen Melvin, Principal Director of Atelier Architects, who believes in working to re-establish the bond between people and their surroundings and fostering a new method for working with landscape and ecology. Fascinated by landscapes and wild places, Stephen explores how we can interact with them and has a passion for changing the narrative around architecture and nature in both urban and rural contexts. The potential to enhance our surroundings counters the digital disconnect of the modern age by weaving together people and nature in harmonious synergy. My approach involves identifying natural elements, creating environments that recall nature, and fostering a sense of connection and well-being among occupants. Green spaces and sustainable materials hold an abundance of environmental benefits. Integrating plants, natural light, and water features into architectural spaces enriches the natural ecology, unlocking the inherent human potential of a space—whether for living, working, or relaxation. www.atelier-architects.co.uk 

Dr Samantha Friedman is a Lecturer in Applied Psychology in Moray House School of Education and Sport at the University of Edinburgh. Samantha's research focuses on critical perspectives on autism, nature, wellbeing, and the intersection of these topics. She is particularly interested in supporting autistic and otherwise neurodivergent young people through nature-based learning.https://www.ed.ac.uk/profile/dr-samantha-friedman

Dr. James Hutson is an administrator, innovator and researcher in higher education, with a diverse range of subject-matter expertise in research, emerging technology, inclusivity, and accessibility. He holds degrees in Art, Art History and Archeology, Leadership, Artificial Intelligence, and Game Design. He has held a variety of positions at Lindenwood University over the past 14 years, including chair of Art History, program manager of Pre-Art Therapy and Pre-Art Conservation, and Assistant Dean of Graduate and Online Programs for the School of Arts, Media, and Communication. Currently, Dr. Hutson serves as Lead XR Disruptor and Department Head of Art History and Visual Culture for the College of Arts and Humanities. His scholarship focuses on digital cultural heritage and neurodiversity in the metaverse. He actively researches the potential educational and social benefits of emerging technologies, such as immersive realities and gamification of education, and has used his expertise to explore new avenues for making cultural heritage accessible to all individuals. His research underscores the importance of inclusivity and accessibility in books such as Inclusive Smart Museums: Engaging Neurodiverse Audiences and Enhancing Cultural Heritage and Sensemaking and Neuroaesthetics: Neuroarts and the Spectrum of Neurodiverse Experiences (Palgrave McMillan, 2024).  https://www.linkedin.com/in/jameshutsonphd/   

Dr. Piper Hutson is a curator with over sixteen years of experience in galleries across the United States. Her career includes co-curating more than forty exhibitions, as well as serving as the head curator for ten shows over the past decade. Dr. Hutson's expertise lies in 19th-century British art, art education, and inclusivity in cultural heritage collections for neurodiverse populations and she has served as both a Corporate Art Curator for Wells Fargo and an instructor in higher education at Lindenwood University. Her current research is dedicated to improving inclusivity in cultural heritage collections for neurodiverse populations. She has authored several works on inclusivity in the workplace and best practices for supporting neurodiversity in cultural heritage institutions with her research underscoring the importance of creating accessible and welcoming spaces for all individuals to engage with cultural heritage collections, including Inclusive Smart Museums: Engaging Neurodiverse Audiences and Enhancing Cultural Heritage and Sensemaking and Neuroaesthetics: Neuroarts and the Spectrum of Neurodiverse Experiences (Palgrave McMillan, 2024). https://www.linkedin.com/in/piper-hutson-77829925/

Tansy Dowman is an award-winning Certified Shinrin Yoku (Forest Bathing) & Natural Mindfulness Guide and an ICF-accredited Personal Growth Life Coach. In April 2024, she became a TEDx Speaker at Brighton TEDx with her talk "Nature, the Friend You've Always Had." Tansy integrates nature as a tool for inspirational growth and wellbeing, believing that a connection to Mother Nature is a direct pathway to reconnecting with your true self. Driven by a purpose to reignite our relationship with this majestic planet we inhabit, Tansy aims to help people come home to their authentic selves, tend to their emotional health and wellbeing, and repair the bond with our environment. Her work emphasises increasing our reciprocity with nature. Previously a writer and presenter for Wellbeing Radio and a published author, Tansy is deeply passionate about sharing her insights. She has appeared on BBC news and radio, Meridian TV, and KMTV as a spokesperson and advocate for Forest Bathing and the importance of nature connection.

Rob Delius is an award-winning architect and the Head of Sustainability at Stride Treglown. Stride Treglown are an employee-owned, carbon neutral company and in 2022 they became the 1st B-Corp in the top 100 practices in the UK. Rob is passionate about placemaking, regenerative design, biodiversity and healthy cities. He has been the winner of several RIBA design competitions, including 'Tomorrow’s Garden City: A sustainable approach to living’. He was behind an ambitious climate art installation in central Bath - a mock-up of sinking house in the river. And more recently instigated a large biodiversity-loss, awareness-raising procession, called 'Funeral for Nature', that was replicated in a number of cities around the world - coderedfornature.uk. He is interested in how we can live in harmony with the natural world, reflected in his website insearchofeden.uk.

Chloe Bullock is the founder of Materialise Interiors, Brighton-based B Corp certified interior design company.  Named as this year’s PETA’s Compassionate Designer in their Vegan Homeware Awards. She is an active Sustainability Committee member of the British Institute of Interior Design (BIID). With 30 years experience of the design industry and most of that time in sustainability, Chloe works for clients in South East England and further away - online, supporting project teams with sustainable and regenerative design solutions - sourcing and materials. She also works with designers and architects to form sustainability strategies and statements for their own business. Chloe’s book Sustainable Interior Design, was commissioned by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and launched Spring 2024.

Frank Gschiegl, a young and innovative interior architect based in Vienna, Austria, has amassed international experience across the UK, Spain, and Asia, now focusing on New Work projects in Europe. Specializing in biophilic design for corporate and office spaces, he emphasizes health and wellbeing for companies and their staff. A nature lover at heart, he brings a calm demeanor to his globally-minded and forward-thinking design projects. https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankgschiegl/

 Ziya Altug is a physiotherapist in Los Angeles, California. He specializes in the treatment of musculoskeletal conditions using principles of lifestyle and integrative medicine. He is the author of The Lifestyle Medicine Toolbox book (Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2024).  https://www.linkedin.com/in/zaltug/

Miglé Gri Founder and CEO Studio Duquette started her career as a European Business Development Director within the luxury interior sector by launching and operating the London branch for a USA based design firm. She then co-founded Studio Duquette, completing a large number of residential projects in prime central London locations whilst growing the company into a truly international brand. https://www.studioduquette.com/home

Francesco Toffoli is an Italian Senior Designer and Artist based in the UK and Portugal, working at the intersection of Botany and Digital Media. With a decade of experience as a Visual, UI, and Motion Designer, his focus is now on the ethics of technology, raising awareness around a conscious use of digital devices, as well as creating experiences that bring people closer to the natural world. His projects received exposure from publishers like the BBC, Forbes Magazine, and Natural Resources Canada, and won multiple international awards at shows like CES Las Vegas and IFA Berlin. Francesco spoke at public conferences and events, including Nordic.Design in Stockholm, and has been leading remote design teams based in Hong Kong, Canada, and the UK. While designing for a fair digital age, he collaborates with architects and interior designers to create unique techno-botanical installations in purposeful spaces, extending the experience of brand design to physical locations. www.francescotoffoli.com

Cecil Konijnendijk co-leads the Nature Based Solutions Institute, a think tank for the evidence-based greening of cities. From Utrecht, The Netherlands, he is also an honorary professor at the University of British Columbia. Cecil has 30 years of experience studying, teaching, and advising on aspects of urban forestry and nature-based solutions. He is widely considered as one of the world’s leading urban forestry experts. A Dutch national, he has lived and worked in Europe, Asia, and North America. Cecil helped found the leading academic journal Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, and edited seminal textbooks such as ‘Urban Forests and Trees’ and ‘The Routledge Handbook of Urban Forestry’. Recently his new book ‘Rethinking Urban Green Spaces’ was published by Edward Elgar Publishing. Cecil is currently Editor-in-chief of the journal Arboriculture and Urban Forestry. He has advised international organisations such as the United Nations, as well as national and local governments in more than 30 countries. In 2021 he launched a new evidence-based guideline for urban greening, the so-called 3+30+300 rule.

Paula Neubauer- Brazilian-born and bred, Paula’s fermentation journey started in the UK. In the last 10 years she went from making water kefir at home, with a copy of Wild Fermentation by Sandor Ellix Katz to starting a small fermentation business during the pandemic using surplus from her adopted home in Somerset to start learning and experimenting with mold ferments. A couple of years ago she decided to look back at her ancestry (her father is from the Amazon, and her Granny from native stock) and started researching Brazilian ferments and in particular ancestral drinks. On August 2023 she went on a field trip to her father’s homeland in the Amazon and to Pantanl region to do some research. That led to an encounter with the Guarani e Kaiowaa of Mato Grosso do Sul, where she was welcomed by a community in Antonio Joao to make local sweet potato chicha with nhandesy Fausta. She felt compelled to document their practice and become a facilitator for them to tell their stories. The Guarani e Kaiowaa are one of the most embattled indigenous communities in Brazil and with dwindling numbers and at-risk communities, the practice of chicha making is falling into disuse. 

Adrian Byne is the co-founder and director of the Benholm Group, a family-owned business specialising in the creation, installation, and maintenance of plant displays for commercial spaces. Headquartered in Falkirk, the birthplace of famed plant explorer George Forrest, Benholm Group prides itself on a creative approach to planting, serving clients throughout the UK. Under Adrian's leadership, Benholm Group has undertaken numerous high-profile projects. Notably, he oversaw the installation of banana plants at Edinburgh Airport, which garnered national attention when the plants produced real, edible bananas. Adrian has also led the company as the official plant supplier for major events such as the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, the 2021 COP26 Summit, and most recently, the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships. Adrian's dedication to integrating plants into the built environment extends to pioneering research aimed at deepening our understanding of how plants and nature can profoundly transform indoor spaces. He spearheaded Benholm Group's participation in the 'Reap What You Sow' study, demonstrating that incorporating plants into office spaces can boost wellbeing by 200%. Celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2023, Benholm Group continues to thrive under Adrian's vision, blending creativity with nature to cultivate healthier and more inspiring spaces. www.benholm.com

CHRIS  CHURCHMAN BAdipLAFLI - Ex Landscape Architect, he established  cquester  in  Oct  2023.  The aim of cquester is to raise public awareness of the value of natural assets, namely trees and soil, in offsetting the effects of climate change. Chris also talks about our dysfunctional national   landscape,  a  product of a subsidy based agricultural system administered  through Brussels,  now abandoned in favour  of  a  more  biodiversity  focused farming outcome.  In Chris's former life he was associated with such notable projects as the Universities of  Birmingham  and Warwick,  The Sammy Ofer Wing at the  National Maritime  Museum,  HS2  Interchange  Station and  the regeneration of the Heygate  Estate, London.   His  canvas  is  now  the 90%  of the  UK  which  still does not contain buildings, i.e  our fields  and forests.  September 2024 sees Chris  embark  on a  400mile  quest,  walking  solo  from Lowestoft  to the  Pembroke  Coast over  18 days.  The aim  is for Chris  to  witness  and  record the  state  of the nation's  landscape  and  to share  this  with a  wider  audience. www.cquester.co.uk

Stephen Choi is a UK-qualified Project Architect and Development Manager who co-founded the not-for-profit environmental consultancy, Architecture for Change. A long-time leader for regenerative design, he has focused on socially-conscious projects that make a real difference in the built environment. http://www.architectureforchange.com